Leadership Asheville

Gary Jackson

City Manager

Public Leadership and Delivering Better Service to Citizens for Less Money

Asheville 2008• Population: 75,948

– 26% minority pop.

• Region: 1+ million

• Urban hub of WNC

– Medicine

– Commerce

– Culture

• Revitalized downtown

• National recognition

– Culture & Arts

– Tourism & natural beauty

– Retirement

City Services

•External Services •Police•Fire & Rescue •Building Safety •Public Works (Streets and Sanitation)•Civic Center•Planning and Development•Water Resources•Parks and Recreation•Engineering & Transportation Services

•Internal Services•Administration (City Manager, Economic Development, Community Development) •City Attorney’s Office•Finance•Human Resources•Information Technology

City Services by the Numbers

•385 miles of roads •133 miles of sidewalks•12,531 street lights•Collecting trash from28,814 rollout containers •Responding to 14,000Calls to emergency medical or fire service •Responding to nearly 100,00 calls for police assistance •50,000 water customers •1,400 miles of water lines•Processing 2,189 building permit applications

Population Percent Change2000-2007

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

-10 0 10 20 30 40 50

Asheville

Wilmington

Greensboro

Winston-Salem

Raleigh

High Point

Charlotte

Durham

Fayetteville

Cary

Percent Change to Daytime PopulationTen Largest Cities in North CarolinaUS Census Bureau 2000

Predicted Future Growth: 2025

• Asheville 90,000 + new residents

• Buncombe County 280,000 + new residents

• 10,000 new homes in Asheville

• 35,000 new homes in Buncombe County

• 350,000 more daily trips on city streets

Challenges and Opportunities with Growth

• Infrastructure Maintenance• Fiscal Responsibility • Environmental Sustainability• Wealth Creation• Housing• Social Issues• Education/Workforce Development

Delivering Cost Effective Services

STRATEGIC GOALS

COST SAVING

INIAITIVES

Asheville will be a city that is:Affordable: The City of Asheville will offer a standard of living

that is affordable and attainable for people of all income levels, life stages and abilities.

Green: Asheville will be the southeastern leader in clean energy and environmental sustainability while preserving and enhancing the city’s natural beauty.

Safe: Asheville will be one of the safest and most secure communities when compared to similar cities.

Sustainable: Asheville will support a sustainable community and a sustainable city government through a strong commitment to infrastructure maintenance, capital improvements, long-term planning and fiscal responsibility.

Cost Saving Initiatives

PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT:

•The Public Works Department is using alternative disposal/composting sites during loose leaf season to reduce tipping fee costs.  Loose leaves are delivered

directly to residents per request, avoiding tipping fees of $8,000.

•The City’s Fleet Division has added a total of 10 compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles since inception (18 months) resulting in fuel savings estimated at $14,310.

•New light fixtures will be installed in the Civic Center lobby in FY 2008-09 producing $2,000/year in savings. 

•Civic Center chiller purchase in early FY 2008-09 will save $85,000/ year. 

•The arena roofing project also has the potential to greatly decrease utility and maintenance costs. Anticipate entering into Phase II of the process in early FY 2008-2009.

CIVIC CENTER

Cost Saving Initiatives

Cost Saving InitiativesWATER RESOURCES:

• The Water Department has saved an estimated $200,000 by using the Asset Management Program and Best Business Case Evaluations on all

projects to determine best value, customer impact, long term sustainability, fire protection upgrades, improved pressure and flow, and

to determine life cycle cost.

•The Water Department saved money by utilizing in-house staff to provide construction project management for the revenue bond projects as opposed to contracting with a third party for project management. 

Cost Saving Initiatives

PLANNING DEPARTMENT

•The Planning Department continues to conduct numerous studies utilizing existing staff instead of consultants.  Savings are estimated at over $100,000.

•The Planning Department also secured equipment and developed a process for electronic submittal and review (still testing).  This new system will save time and money for both the City and the development community. 

Cost Savings Initiatives

FIRE AND RESCUE DEPARTMENT

•Revamped automatic aid agreements with all of our neighboring fire departments.  Use of these departments’ resources dramatically reduces the city's cost in equipment and personnel, and helps with response time.

•Partners with AB Tech for training, which results in over $100,000.00 annual savings.

•Stationed fire marshals in the physical areas that they serve to reduce fuel and labor costs and are currently implementing fuel cards to reduce fuel costs when re-fuelling fire apparatus. 

Cost Saving Initiatives

• Restructured the Transit and Parking services divisions to create a Transportation Management Services Division to coordinate all transportation planning functions.  These functions include public transportations, bike planning, transportation demand management, planning for sidewalks, coordination with taxi cab providers and trolley services.

• Using a $2.1 million grant from the state, the Transit Division will replace five buses, which will improve efficiency and reduce maintenance costs.

TRANSPORTATON AND ENGINEERING

Questions?